WorkSafe’s April 2026 Asbestos Guidance: What Property Owners Should Know

It is updated guidance—not yet a replacement ACOP

WorkSafe has divided the new material into guidance for building owners and businesses, surveyors, removalists, assessors, tradespeople and homeowners. WorkSafe says good-practice guidelines for surveys, removal and assessments may later be developed into updated ACOPs after the health and safety reforms progress.

PropertyHelp therefore checks work against the Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016, the existing 2016 ACOP and the relevant April 2026 guidance. A website or quotation should not call the April 2026 suite a new ACOP.

What matters for Class B removal

The new guidance clarifies that a Class B supervisor who is required to be ‘in the vicinity’ must be in the general area nearby, in person, and readily available. It also gives more detail on when asbestos-contaminated dust is Class A, Class B or unlicensed work, depending on how the dust was created and how much is present.

• Classify the asbestos material, its condition and the proposed removal method before accepting the job
• Treat asbestos-contaminated dust separately instead of automatically describing all dust as non-friable
• Keep the Class B supervisor nearby in person and readily available for the work
• Use a site-specific asbestos removal control plan for licensed removal
• Notify WorkSafe in writing at least five days before licensed removal work starts, including site set-up, unless an exception applies

Monitoring, worker health and independence

The April 2026 suite adds guidance about when exposure monitoring is required under the General Risk and Workplace Management Regulations. It also says health monitoring for a person starting licensed removal work should begin within four weeks.

Clearance and assessment arrangements must be considered before work begins. WorkSafe’s updated guidance gives more detail about independence between the removalist and the assessor or competent person. For Class B work, the clearance inspection can be undertaken by an independent competent person where the regulations allow; Class A work has licensed-assessor requirements.

The updated Class A expectations

PropertyHelp is currently a Class B licensed removalist and is developing the systems needed for a future Class A application. WorkSafe’s April 2026 guidance raises several points that must be designed into that transition.

• The Class A supervisor must be present throughout the removal process, from site set-up until the clearance inspection is complete
• Required Class A air monitoring must continue throughout removal until clearance
• Class A work requires a detailed four-stage clearance process by an independent licensed asbestos assessor
• A mobile decontamination unit requires its own clearance certificate
• Friable removal, enclosures, negative pressure, decontamination, RPE, exposure monitoring and emergency arrangements must be supported by competent workers and a robust management system

Survey and clearance testing has changed

WorkSafe’s updated guidance prohibits swab samples for identifying asbestos during surveys. Representative bulk material sampling and suitable laboratory analysis remain the evidence-based approach.

For clearance work, WorkSafe has moved away from swab testing during the relevant surface-testing stage and now specifies controlled disturbance. The assessor or competent person—not the removalist—must select and perform the assessment method appropriate to the job.

What PropertyHelp clients should expect

For work within PropertyHelp’s current Class B scope, the job file should clearly show the material and scope, ARCP, notification where required, worker information and instructions, supervisor arrangements, site controls, cleaning, waste disposal, handover and any independent clearance.

If the condition, dust, removal method or other evidence indicates that the work is friable or outside Class B scope, PropertyHelp will not relabel it to fit the licence. Until WorkSafe grants PropertyHelp a Class A licence, the correct licensed Class A removalist or specialist must be used.